I am researching a WWII soldier who worked at Fort Sam Houston as an x-ray tech. I'm looking for information on the x-ray machines of the time, safety precautions taken (if any) by the men using them, and information on what a typical working day/week would have been like for these techs. Suggestions of where to find information would be appreciated.

If you haven’t already done so, you may want to request the soldier’s personnel file. Unfortunately, many of the Army personnel records from that period were destroyed in a fire in 1973, but if the record still exists, it would give medical information about the soldier, information on training that the soldier completed, and would probably have information about his unit, which could be helpful for further research. If you would like to submit a request for his personnel file, you may do so on NARA’s Military Personnel Records website.

If you know the unit that the soldier you’re researching served in, you might be able to find a unit history or similar information at the National Archives in College Park, Maryland. You can email the Textual Reference Branch for further assistance.

This series of Air Force Central Decimal Correspondence Files, 1919-1950 includes several file units related to the certification of x-ray equipment, laboratories, and technicians. From the catalog entry, you can search within the file units list of this series to see what is available.

Additionally, the history page for Fort Sam Houston includes their museum’s contact information; they may be able to offer you more information regarding the fort.